Stockbroker Goldman Sachs has placed Statoil third among 23 oil companies in a survey covering ethics, environmental protection and social responsibility.
This assessment was carried out in November 2003-February 2004 in compiling the UN-mandated Goldman Sachs Energy Environmental and Social Index.
The oil companies were assessed on such aspects as environmentally-harmful emissions and discharges, human rights, safety and openness.
"It is gratifying that we are ranked so high in this report," says Rolf Magne Larsen, senior vice president for country analysis and social responsibility in Statoil. "This shows that we are on the right track in our work with sustainable development."
Statoil’s recently-published Transparency and trust sustainability report has also aroused interest among international investors.
They are keen to meet the group and hear more about its views on health, safety and the environment (HSE), ethics and social responsibility.
Mr Larsen and investor relations adviser Lars Troen Sørensen have recently held meetings with a number of investors in London and Paris to present Statoil’s work in these areas.
“Some of the major investors are interested in us because they’ve started to look more closely at criteria of this kind,” explains Mr Larsen.
“Socially responsible investment has become an established concept in the international financial market.
“A growing number of investors find it important to identify a company’s expected HSE, ethical and social responsibility results in addition to their forecast financial performance.”
Mr Sørensen adds that Statoil will be holding similar meetings with investors at regular intervals.
“These meetings are valuable because they give us feedback about which issues concern people. Investors unquestionably see us as a leader in HSE, ethics and social responsibility.”